I began taking yoga in 2001, and immediately fell in love with the profound peace that the practice provided. I soon discovered that my mind and body craved this experience as often as possible, and that this wonderful adventure spilled over into my work, home, and relationships. People began to observe a transformation about me both physically and emotionally, and all in positive ways.
Originally, in the ‘good old days’ yoga was practiced without incense, music, or chic yoga togs. I practiced yoga with discipline, and then eventually began teaching yoga to share calm, tranquility, and peace. I was not into the yoga “scene”. I just relished the opportunity to be quiet and mindful, to slow down for an hour and half as often per week as possible. Classes emphasized moving slowly, mindful of each micromovement that made up each asana. We lingered in the poses, as we allowed our bodies to settle in to the point where we no longer were doing the pose, but being the pose. We came to practice even though the poses were sometimes challenging, we left feeling a little smoother, a little quieter, a little happier than when we arrived.
Soon yoga practice and yoga teaching began to evolve. It picked up the pace in order to fit into busy Western culture. Things sped up, we turned up the volume, we turned up the heat, we turned up the fashion quotient, and Savasana, once a 10-15 minute respite, was reduced to 5 minutes or less, an afterthought.
I am thrilled that yoga has gotten the widespread recognition that it deserves, but I want to preserve the simplicity of the ‘good old days’. I love presenting slow-paced classes with gentle music allowing practitioners to hear the sound of their collective breathing, amidst comfortable temperatures, dressed in clothes for comfort not style. For me, yoga is not about burning calories, sweating or getting my buttocks kicked!!! That already happens in life, as most of us are overstimulated, over committed, and overly distracted. For me, yoga practice and yoga teaching, are times to replenish and relax my edgy nervous system. Yes, I admit it, I teach from my own practice, and although I touch a much smaller population than the mainstream loud, fast, kick-buttocks style attracts, there are still many people who, like me, crave calm, quiet, non-competitive practice.
I teach old school yoga because that is the yoga that I love. It is my passion. My simple, slow-paced practice never fails to clear my mind and body, to make me feel calm, clean, energetic and easeful. It sets me up to meet my days with a deep core of peace and clarity. As for fast paced exercise, heat, and sweat, well, I get that with my walks and hikes, as well as the side benefit of being with nature!!!—Namaste’, Deb
